How To Get Help For You or a Friend

There are many reasons why you or a friend could be going through a difficult time while attending College or University. You or they could be home-sick, have relationship issues, be struggling with studies or one of the most common and destructive problems, handling a drug addiction.

What You Can Do

In the case of a drug problem, be it any drug, legal or not, there are ways in dealing with it and people there to support you and/or your friend.

Here are a few ways in which you can get help:

Get in touch and talk to your student guide/counsellor, they’re here to help and keep everything you talk about confidential.

Make an appointment and talk to your local GP. They know how to help you and/or your friend and have encountered these sorts of situations many times before.

Call Talk To Frank or Addiction Helper for confidential advice and someone to talk to about your concerns and problems.

A drug problem or addiction can infiltrate anyone’s lives, and it does, which is why there is always help available for anyone who needs it. And as a student, you can make use of University Counselling services which exist solely to help you.

Helping a Friend with Drug Problems

Often people do not want to confront their friends or family about their drug problem as they either feel they would cause offence, or because they feel as if it would be intruding too much on the friend’s life. On the contrary, most friends will appreciate the thought and consideration you have given them.

You can help them by supporting them through their problem and the stresses that come with it. Make sure they always have someone they can talk to when they are struggling or suffering.

The next step is to advise them to seek help. As stated above, try to get them to consider going to their student counsellor, their local GP or to phone a drug helpline like Addiction Helper or AA or NA.

Taking any of these actions is one of the first steps to recovery and getting life back on track for you and/or your friend.

Supporting A Friend With Drug Problems

It’s very important to support your friend during their hard times; here are some rough guidelines on what to do in terms of interaction to make your friend’s first steps towards recovery as comfortable as possible.

Respect your friend’s privacy; they’ll need some space while going through these changes in their life.

Be positive; avoid coming across as judgmental.

Be sure to prioritise listening to your friend, no doubt they’ll have to vent some stuff out every now and then and it’ll be comforting to have someone close to listen to how they feel.

Encourage your friend to seek help and make them understand that there is absolutely nothing wrong with getting help with drug problems. Remind them that all help is completely confidential and private.

Help is Always Available

If you or someone you know is suffering from drug addiction, know that help is always at hand. Everyone can overcome alcohol and drug problems, regardless in what state they are in – there’s help out there for you to get the best out of life.

Relevant Links

Finding useful information and resources about addiction or alcoholism can be a minefield. To increase the chance of a successful recovery and life of sobriety it is important to receive guidance from a reliable source.